Urodacus lunatus

Urodacus lunatus
Holotype ♂ Scale bar = 1 cm (0.4 in)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Subphylum:	Chelicerata
Class:	Arachnida
Order:	Scorpiones
Family:	Urodacidae
Genus:	Urodacus
Species:	U. lunatus
Binomial name
Urodacus lunatus Buzatto et al., 2023
Urodacus lunatus is only shown by green circles

Urodacus lunatus is a rare species of burrowing scorpion in the family Urodacidae. It is endemic to the northern part of western Australia and was described in 2023. ^[1]

Description

Urodacus lunatus cannot be distinguished from Urodacus uncinus with external morphology and examination of genitalia is required. ^[1]

Distribution and ecology

The species is known from 9 specimens from 3 locations in Pilbara shown by the green circles on the range map. These locations only make up around 50 km² (20 mi²), which means it is a short-range endemic species, as it is likely distributed in under 10,000 km² (3860 mi²). ^[1]

It is likely fossorial but this is based on the similar species U. uncinus . It is hypothesized that the males travel longer distances to mate, as this is common in the genus. ^[1]

Etymology

The specific epithet "lunatus" refers to the crescent or lunate shape of the laminar hook in the hemispermatophore, a part of the genitalia. ^[1]

Shape of the laminar hook (Lh)

References

1. Buzatto, Bruno A.; Clark, Huon L.; Harvey, Mark S.; Volschenk, Erich S. (2023-11-03). Cooper, Steven (ed.). "Two new species of burrowing scorpions (Urodacidae: Urodacus) from the Pilbara region of Western Australia with identical external morphology". Australian Journal of Zoology. 71 (1). doi: 10.1071/ZO23018 . ISSN   0004-959X.